State of Affairs
by Sliver of Light
Summary: It’s Athrun’s birthday, and he’s throwing a party for everyone. Lacus barely manages to come home because of work and she hears from the birthday boy that Kira has been so worried about her that he even neglected his own health. Random story w fluff.


**Title:** State of Affairs

**Author:** Duchess of Milano

**Pairings:** Kira x Lacus, Athrun x Cagalli

**Rating:** K+

**Summary: **It's Athrun's birthday, and he's throwing a party for everyone. Lacus barely manages to come home because of work and she hears from the birthday boy that Kira has been so worried about her that he even neglected his own health. Athrun on the other hand had his own dilemma regarding a certain blonde who didn't want to wear a certain dress.

**Warning:** Extreme OOC, corny scenes, stubbornness and fluff

**A/N:** Hi there! It's been a while since I've written something here. I think I'm going to settle down with one-shots _for the meantime_. This is my first GSD fic (done within an hour) and hope you enjoy reading it as I've enjoyed writing it.

---

"You know what?"

"Hm?"

"You've really got a…_weird_…taste on clothing. I think this would go better with your clothes than what you're wearing right now because that one seems too bright," said Lacus, bringing out a dark blue jacket from Kira's wardrobe trunk after sizing him up for five minutes. Kira was currently staring at his reflection on the full-body mirror, looking slightly disenchanted upon hearing his girlfriend's comment on his taste.

"You think pink's bright on me?" asked Kira while turning around to scrutinize his back.

Lacus looked thoughtfully at the silk-like jacket Kira was wearing before tilting her head to the left and answering him.

"It wouldn't match the proposed motif of Athrun's party I think," she said, remembering that Athrun once mentioned to her that he'd like to have dark colored clothing in his upcoming birthday.

"But it would match your hair, as well as your outfit," Kira grinned. "We'll be nice to look at together."

Lacus looked almost flabbergasted by the idea of "matching looks" coming from Kira who wouldn't naturally use such trivial fact for reasoning.

"I think pink doesn't look to good on guys," quipped Lacus who thought otherwise though. _If you go out on that, I bet girls would be fawning over you. Well, not that I'll get jealous. It's just for precaution. And, um, unwanted attention because you're getting too much attention just being in a simple civilian's outfit so what more would you be getting when you're dressed in such…manner?_

"Because Athrun said it was fine."

Lacus was glad Kira was busy frowning at the little stain on his boots because he wasn't able to see the sudden little twitch her pink eyebrows made when Kira used Athrun as an excuse. She sighed with defeat and plopped down on the soft bed behind her and decided to fix the ribbon behind her instead.

"Oh, did he say that? Well, if he thinks you look good in it, I guess it's ok," she silently muttered without looking at Kira. "It's his birthday anyway, you can add that as an extra gift…" she added with a little shrug.

Kira wasn't sure if he was imagining it but, was that a tone of jealousy in Lacus' voice? Maybe he read her wrongly again. He looked behind him and found Lacus cutely sulking, feigning annoyance with the little ribbon on her back that she was failing to tie properly. Kira smiled and approached his girlfriend. He sat behind her and helped her tie the little bow without even bothering to hide his smile.

"You seem so happy Kira," she said with an interested look on her face that failed to mask the feeling that was quietly surfacing on her features. She looked away and smiled at the framed portrait of the two young couple taken during her birthday a year ago. It was her favorite picture of them. In the picture, Kira had his left arm around her waist and his face was turned to the side as he kissed her face with a beautiful smile on his face. She was smiling herself in the picture with a little look of surprise in her face because the kiss Kira gave her was not supposed to be part of the pose.

"It's a good thing war is already over and peace has finally come back to PLANT and Earth," she stated softly, averting her gaze towards Kira. "I wouldn't be able to come visit you here in ORB if there was still tension going on between both sides. They wouldn't let me anywhere outside PLANT if ever." Lacus added a little laugh after that.

"Lacus," started Kira as he drew nearer her. "Thanks for coming but really, you don't need to strain yourself so much over these things anymore. Athrun said he'd understand if you couldn't make it this year to his birthday and I he agreed to my suggestion that we visit you instead and have a celebration with the four of us in PLANT but you really were stubborn. We were willing to have all the preparations cancelled here when we heard you said you'd still try to come amidst your tight schedule."

The pink-haired girl almost laughed at Kira's pout but simply smiled again and shook her head as her boyfriend rested his chin on her shoulder. She fondly caressed the brunette's cheek before giving it a little peck.

"You're always concerned about other people that sometimes you forget about yourself," she whispered while leaning on Kira's shoulder. Kira looked at her questioningly and she could see the confusion swirling in his eyes.

"Myself? But it was Athrun who was more concerned…what do you mean?" Kira asked, not getting what Lacus meant at all.

"Athrun told me that you were really worried that they were overworking me back at PLANT that you weren't eating anymore," she chortled lightly, fighting the urge to hug Kira and squeeze him tight to show her affection. "But you should know that overwork won't kill me. It's part of the job description. Athrun was hysterical over the phone last night."

"Hysterical? Why?"

Lacus laughed. "It's because of you, silly! He was frantic he couldn't coax you into taking in your required diet for a week and he was starting to think you were using me as an excuse to hide your being anorexic."

Lacus said everything with a tone of mixed amusement and anxiety. She was amused at how Athrun could get _that_ agitated over Kira's well-being and anxious that Kira might do a great damage to his own health because of worrying over her too much.

Kira, on the other hand, felt something akin to humiliation for having worried the two most special people in his life, making his cheeks turn into a beautiful shade of pink, matching perfectly his pink-colored jacket.

"I…uh…well, I didn't know…he was _that_ worried," murmured Kira with embarrassment. He only received a small chuckle in return from the lady beside him. "I mean, it's normal for a boyfriend to get worried over his girlfriend right?! I can't have you stressed out so much… I should ask _Athrun_ to convince some people out there to give _us_ a well-deserved vacation."

"By us," started Lacus slyly, "do you mean you and Athrun together?"

Kira almost slipped off the bed after hearing the not-so-innocent question of Lacus. He didn't miss the innuendo that blatantly laced the inquiry, which brought him back to his earlier suspicions that the girl was jealous over something he couldn't quite put his finger on yet. The last idea though was negated by Lacus' sudden giggle.

Kira arched a slender eyebrow. _Am I having a feeling that my girlfriend has suddenly turned into some sort of a… fangirl? _Kira swore he was starting to have goose bumps. He was also starting to entertain the absurd idea that some impostor was playing a prank on him and that the real Lacus was still somewhere in the space aboard the Eternal…He shook his head. He was thinking too much it seems.

"Maybe…arrgh..!?! Lacus! no! I mean… us, we, that is to say, you and me and Athrun and my sister," said Kira in one breathe, feeling nervous that Lacus might get the wrong idea.

Lacus was still giggling when there was a knock from the other side of the door and Athrun's voice floated inside the room.

"Kira? Lacus? Are you ready yet? Cagalli didn't want to go to the venue without you two," came Athrun's cool and calm voice.

"Um… just a minute Athrun!" replied Kira who was then putting on his socks as Lacus was putting the final touches on her own dress.

Athrun noticed that the voice of Kira came from the corner where the bed was and knowing this fact, he couldn't help but think that he had just interrupted something special between the two.

"Did I interrupt something?" he asked playfully while leaning on the wall to the left of the door. "Just give me a ring on my phone if I can come fetch you already. I'll just go back and check on Cagalli. See you later!" With that, Kira heard light footsteps walk away from the door.

"He thinks we're smooching or something," said an exasperated Kira who was red with embarrassment for the second time that day. "I told him we'd never do that! Only he and Cagalli have the nerves to do that…"

Little did the brunette know that his little outbursts, like this one, were one of the many reasons Lacus had the pretty smiles on her face and that it provided her entertainment that no other girl would ever expect from the features of the ultimate Coordinator. Kira knew he was overreacting but he wasn't _that_ oblivious to Lacus' poor attempt of stifling a laugh.

When Lacus managed to suppress her laugh, she glanced briefly once at Kira before striding towards the door, only to find herself hugged from behind by Kira who had his forehead resting on her back.

"What's wrong Kira?" she asked gently while lolling her head to the back to rest at Kira's head. "You shouldn't worry anymore. I'm here… We're going to be fine. You promised that right?"

"That's why I'm scared…"

"Hm?" Lacus pried slowly Kira's arms from her waist and turned around to look at her self-doubting boyfriend. "What are you scared of?"

"I…" He hugged her and buried his face on her neck. Lacus could feel he was nearing shedding tears but knowing Kira, he wouldn't want to show anymore weakness in front of her.

"Tell me Kira," soothed Lacus as she softly rubbed the back of the brunette as though she was a mother comforting her distraught son.

"I don't want to lose you…" whispered Kira breathlessly as he looked at the beautiful cerulean orbs which he has lost himself into. He gave her a small kiss before resting their foreheads together, his warm palms over Lacus' cold yet soft cheeks.

"Silly, you will not," she replied as she settled her palm over his fingers, reassuring him she was there and that she wouldn't suddenly vanish before him. "For the nth time, I'm reassuring you. That ambush wasn't true. It was a false alarm because it wasn't really an ambush. They weren't targeting anyone. It was just a drill. I knew that and the media just got all hyped about it, sending the wrong message to the people. You got victimized by wrong information too, I'm sorry."

She understood what Kira was undergoing. The war where all of them barely survived in would make anyone this guarded and wary over a simple (even wrong idea of) ambush. She only hopes that Kira would be able to adjust soon enough before she would have to leave for PLANT again. She couldn't leave him in this state.

"I want to protect you but being here on earth would deprive me of that want," said Kira as he closed his eyes, fighting the tears from leaking out of his eyes. "I want to be with you in PLANT but Athrun also needs me here to help him look after Cagalli."

"Now now, Cagalli wouldn't want to hear that coming from you," chided Lacus half-heartedly. "And yes, Athrun would need you hear in ORB more than I do in PLANT."

"Is this ok?" asked Kira as he kissed Lacus' forehead. "Would you be fine? I can't…I can't stand not being there beside you if a real ambush happens or if a war suddenly breaks out… or… Lacus, I'd be restless here…"

Lacus was torn between sighing and laughing at her boyfriend's stubbornness. She knew he was concerned and she was really thankful for having him caring and overprotective of her but she wouldn't have it affecting him to the point that he is incapable of making the right decision anymore.

"Strike Freedom…"

Kira looked at Lacus as she gently wiped the tear that he unknowingly had escaped at the corner of his eye upon hearing the familiar name of his gundam which he has not piloted for almost two years.

"Use it…if the situation calls for it," she said, gathering Kira's hands in her own.

"But ORB will—"

"—be willing to let Freedom be used again," she interjected, not allowing Kira to finish his statement. "They know your position, and they would not interfere in your decisions. Cagalli made sure of that."

"Cagalli? You talked with her about this?" asked Kira tersely. He sat down and looked at the clock. It was 10 minutes to six. He needed to give Athrun a ring soon.

Lacus nodded in response and gave him another reassuring tap on the cheek that managed to calm down his frantically beating heart. "So Kira, if you feel you need to be there, be there. PLANT will always be open to earth. But you should not worry yourself too much," she actually laughed again, revealing her more childish side. "You don't want Athrun to get wrinkles now _worrying _about _you..._And I certainly don't want to get a call from him telling me that you're neglecting your meals again. I wouldn't be happy if you continue doing that."

Kira nodded. "I'm sorry… that was… too childish of me. I forgot that Athrun also worries about my well-being, not only Cagalli's." Kira laughed."Well, I think I should give him a ring now… He might be waiting already."

"A _ring?" _asked Lacus cheerfully.

"A _telephone ring,_" corrected Kira, rolling his eyes at his girlfriend's silent laughter and slightly annoying jokes.

He strode past Lacus from the door and went to the bed, getting his abandoned cellphone inside the drawer. After searching for Athrun's name in his phonebook, he dialed the number and waited for the other side to ring.

"Kira?" asked Lacus who joined him on the bed. "Is there something wrong?" she asked as she saw Kira's sweet face turn sour and his eyebrows come together at the center. She looked curiously at Kira who shook his head.

"His phone's not ringing," Kira supplied while shutting his own cellphone. "I don't think they'd have already left the building. He told us to give him a ring, right?"

Lacus nodded. "We should go check on them then. We can't have his visitors waiting for much longer."

---

"You haven't changed yet?" asked a surprised Athrun who opened the door to their room only to find a seething blonde who was wearing a black sleeveless shirt and a brown knee-length shorts, pacing the room restlessly.

"I've told you! I'm not going to wear that…that…thing!!!" shouted a fuming Cagalli while backing away from her boyfriend who now held a blue above-the-knee strapless dress.

"Why? You've worn this before, right? So why not wear it now?" asked an annoyed Athrun who was nearing the edge of snapping. He didn't find anything in the dress that would be a good enough reason to cause Cagalli's boiling temper at the moment.

"Because…I don't want to!" snapped Cagalli whose face burned red of embarrassment and anger. "And for your information Zala, I have not worn that…that…revealing outfit yet!"

Athrun understood right away the cause of the outrage. He remembered the first time they met several years ago when he even mistook her for a boy. And now, his beloved girlfriend decided to throw one of her 'tantrums' on his special day. _Quite cute actually_, he thought, but the fact that they're making guests wait and that it was starting to annoy him already told him that he should move fast. Either she wears that or…

"So," started Athrun, crossing his arms and cocking his head to the right (which annoyed Cagalli even more), "you rather go in that outfit than in this dress. Is that what you're saying Ms. Attha?"

"No! I rather wear something _less_ revealing than that one," said the princess flatly, finally feeling the anger causing unwanted pain build in her head.

"Cagalli, I know you're boyish and all but please, oh please, just this once, will you wear this for me? Do me a favor and put this on?"

Cagalli looked like she was about to protest again but stopped herself, realizing that her trivial and pointless (not actually) anger would get them nowhere. She violently grabbed the dress from Athrun's slackened grip and turned around to start undressing. Athrun smiled and hurriedly looked the other way upon seeing his girlfriend start disrobing.

"And I've tried so hard not to look so sexy," muttered Cagalli while grudgingly putting on the dress. She didn't even bother to remove her boots while doing so.

"I beg your pardon?" asked Athrun who instinctively looked behind only to be automatically introduced to the nearest book Cagalli could get a hold of.

"Watch where you're looking at Zala!" she glared as she continued buttoning the lower part of the dress.

Athrun easily evaded the book and abruptly turned around and stifling a laugh that was threatening to surface in his mouth. He was successful, and he decided to settle with the smile that was gracing his handsome face. _As though I'd really see anything worth remembering_, he thought but only jokingly of course because he could care less if Cagalli had a good figure or not. He was still grateful that it was the former though that his girlfriend possessed. Beauty and brains, he couldn't ask for more.

"So… why do you 'try so hard not to look so sexy' pray tell me?" asked an amused Athrun. Cagalli blushed as she tried to pull the zipper behind her and she knew that the raven-haired boy was having fun at her expense.

"You wouldn't want other men flocking towards me now, do you?" asked Cagalli with a mocking tone, feeling proud that she was one of the few people who could actually make Athrun Zala flinch with the frankness of her words, besides her brother of course.

"Oh ho, so it was for me then?" asked Athrun, now turning around again to see Cagalli struggle with the zipper locking her dress on place. He shook his head and approached her, placing his hand over her struggling one. He managed to get a small 'ah' from the girl who was still as bright as a tomato. He was glad though that Cagalli did not turn around to punch the lights out of him but instead retracted her hands and made them go limp at her sides.

"I thought that, you wouldn't want me in a _skimpy_ outfit," defended Cagalli who was indignant for having her efforts put to waste.

"Skimpy?" asked a taken aback Athrun who stopped briefly in his zipping duty before resuming. "I'd never buy you _skimpy_ dresses. I make sure they're neither too conservative nor too scanty. I'd like you to wear clothing that suits you of course."

"Suits me you say," huffed Cagalli while crossing her arms. "It's as if MY own choice of clothes _doesn't _suit me at all Zala."

Athrun couldn't stop himself from chuckling. He was currently enjoying this childish side of his girlfriend and moments like this one were hard to come by during hard times and he was glad Cagalli still hasn't lost the roughness and the stubbornness he had fallen in love with.

"Well, actually, your house clothes are MY clothes," said Athrun as-a-matter-of-factly. This comment surely made Cagalli's ears go red with embarrassment.

"I…! Uh…well, you see, I barely stay at home! I always stay at the office—you know that too—so what's the point of buying myself clothes I won't be able to use all the time?" she defended, stuttering every now and then, earning a small kiss from Athrun on her cheek.

The raven-haired boy got ahold of her shoulders and made her turn around, looking at her in the eye. There was a mixture of awkwardness and vehemence in the eyes of the girl, conveying the strength of her convictions. The topic was trivial actually, yet her confidence was ever present…

Athrun smiled, and hugged her, taking the blonde completely by surprise.

"A-Athrun…"

"Thanks," said Athrun shortly before kissing her and letting her go while taking her hand into his own, pulling her lightly towards the exit.

"For what?" asked Cagalli who had forgotten all anger after Athrun's little show of affection. "I've been bitching like some kid here over trivial matters and…you're thanking me? That was so childish of me…"

Athrun laughed. "Not that. Really, you have the same train of thought as Kira. The only difference is that you're a lot fiercer and his a lot gentler."

Cagalli's face that was back to normal color was suddenly the shade of pink again.

"I was thanking you for caring about me," said Athrun, feeling his heartbeat go a little bit faster.

Cagalli almost hit Athrun with what he said. "That's natural of course. I'm your girlfriend, and you're my boyfriend so it's natural that I care for you. And I thought you were going insane or something… thanking me for snapping at you like that…"

"I mean, you'd go to all lengths to deprive yourself a woman's natural wants just to stop guys from "flocking" towards you. You don't have to worry that much. I'm not your typical boyfriend who gets unreasonably jealous."

"I beg your pardon?" This time, it was Cagalli's turn to ask this. "It is not in my list of wants to wear skin-revealing outfit thank you! And I did not say that you're going to get jealous or anything."

"Nevertheless, thanks, for bringing constant fun in my life," repeated Athrun lovingly as he stole a kiss from his girlfriend's lips.

He received a little thwap! on his head for the sudden action as well as a frustrated blush on his girlfriend's face who was muttering about "crazy boyfriends and skimpy dresses". Athrun was still nursing his abused temple when the blushing Cagalli led them both to the door and opened it to reveal a Kira and Lacus who obviously were standing outside (and probably listening) for not less than 10 minutes according to her estimation.

The two set of couples were red on the face and were, for a minute, unable to form coherent words, until Kira shyly said, "I think we better get going Athrun, your guests have been waiting long enough." He received three simultaneously nodding heads as the unanimous response after his humble pronouncement.

The two girls walked together as they chatted away about the state of their countries, leaving their boyfriends to walk together behind them. There was an awkward silence between the two young men broken only when both decided to blurt out their thoughts at the same time.

"Why did you—"

"I'm sorry I—"

Silence…

"Uh, you go ahead—"

"You can talk first—"

Another silence…

"Ok, I'm sorry for telling Lacus about your state," apologized Athrun, who now looked so stress and tired after all the petty arguing he had with his girlfriend a few minutes ago.

Kira nodded, urging him to go on.

"I just couldn't stand seeing you wasting your life—"

When Kira heard "wasting your life", a part of his mind urged him to butt in and explain himself.

"Wasting my life?" asked the brunette, without raising his voice. "I think that's an overstatement Athrun. I'm not doing that and I have no plans of doing that any time in my life."

"Ok, so it's an overstatement," conceded Athrun, not wanting to start a petty argument with Kira too. "but the fact that you're neglecting your meals and not sleeping for four straight days—be glad I didn't tell Lacus about that too!—when you heard that there was an ambush which was not really an ambush… You're worrying too much Kira. Lacus isn't your damsel-in-distress. She's a strong woman—and you were the one who told me that too—and she won't do anything that would compromise her position."

"It's not in her choice to be compromised," answered Kira with a sigh. "Sometimes, there are circumstances that even we can't see coming. And I just want to make sure Lacus wouldn't be in any circumstance that I'd be regretting later on. That's why I want to make sure she's fine, that her work won't cut her life short for her and that I'd be there when she needs me."

Athrun smiled and shook his head. He was grateful Lacus had someone as caring and protective as Kira for a boyfriend. Knowing that, he was able to go to sleep at night without worrying about the girl's security.

"I really admire that about you Kira," replied Athrun while looking at the back of his ex-fiance. "But you should trust her more, like the way she trusts you."

Kira took in Athrun's short advice and thought it over. Well, it was natural for him to get worried over his girlfriend but now that he analyzed his previous actions, some were really… uncalled for on his part. He made Athrun worry over him because he worried _too much _over his girlfriend.

He looked at Athrun and gave him an apologetic smile. He got one in return and a small tap in the shoulder from the raven-haired boy.

"Guess I got you worried over nothing…sorry," apologized Kira while rubbing the back of his head.

Athrun violently shaked his head and threw an arm loosely around Kira's shoulders. "Worried over nothing? You're not nothing you know. You're my bestfriend! I wouldn't let my bestfriend die because of a girl!!!" he retorted, feigning a revolted expression on his face, making the brunette laugh at his bestfriend's antics.

The two girls in front of them heard the laughter from the two men, earning them a glance and a smirk that screamed "we know something you guys don't know". When Athrun raised a questioning eyebrow and Kira asked with the usual "what", Cagalli rolled her eyes and Lacus stifled another laugh.

"What is it, you two, that you find so funny?" asked a slightly annoyed Athrun. Kira, on the other hand, had a handful of this kind of innuendo from Lacus several minutes ago, so he wasn't really that left in the dark like Athrun was. He didn't dare tell Athrun about it, because he didn't want to see the reaction of the other boy.

"You two seem to get along very well that I think I'm starting getting jealous," teased Lacus who looked so serious that if Kira didn't know her well, would think that she was actually green with envy. The effect though wasn't that convincing when Cagalli turned a laugh into a cough and her eyes were crinkled with amusement.

"Nice outfit Cagalli," diverted Kira who himself was smiling upon seeing the small blush that found its way on Athrun's pale cheeks. He nudged Athrun on the side while shaking his head, telling him not to take Lacus seriously on that one.

"Thanks Kira," chirped Cagalli who felt elated for having been praised by her twin and not scolded for once for being boyish.

Athrun, unlike what Kira thought, did get the idea, and just played along trying to "aggravate Lacus' jealousy" by getting closer to his bestfriend, who was now sending alarm bells over his sister, asking for help. Cagalli knew it was all a joke and did nothing to help her brother. She looked straight ahead as though Athrun's flirting with Kira was nothing but a way to kill time as they walked towards the open garden outside the mansion.

"So Kira, I've overheard you wanted a vacation for the two of us", drawled Athrun near Kira's ear. Lacus glanced at Athrun when he mentioned the part of "overhearing" her previous conversation with Kira but shrugged after realizing that there wasn't anything in the little talk they had that Athrun should not have had heard.

Kira, who found Athrun's double entendre disturbing and so out of character, playfully punched the raven-haired boy's cheek, earning him a half-hearted glare from Cagalli before snubbing him.

"I'd never want to spend a vacation with just the two of us," Kira joked back. "You know why? Because I'll spend so much on room service and our meals that I'd probably clean my whole wallet before our vacation ends."

"Really?" asked Athrun while latching his arm around Kira's own. "Or, is it because you find my looks alarmingly enchanting that you won't be able to think straight during vacation when I'm around?" The taller boy smiled evilly, a feat that Kira was sure Athrun wasn't capable of, before laughing at his own words. Kira didn't know what to say to that anymore and decided to just laugh along. Athrun could be so scary sometimes, he thought.

"Oy, you two lovebirds, enough with the flirting," chuckled Lacus as they arrived in the garden where the visitors who were merrily talking fell silent one by one upon the arrival of the celebrant.

"Yeah, or the guests would get the wrong idea about us," added Kira as he unlatched his arm from Athrun's and took Lacus' instead.

Lacus stepped back for the raven-haired boy to take her place beside Cagalli as she took Athrun's place beside Kira. She smiled encouragingly at her boyfriend who gripped her hand in return. Cagalli walked beside Athrun as he offered his arm for her to hold on.

_-end_-


End file.
